The hottest Thought experiment Substack posts right now

Imagine encountering a mysterious situation that challenges your beliefs and reality.
Consider the idea of accepting unexpected joy and companionship even if it defies logic.
Question whether to embrace a surreal but happy scenario or reject it due to perceived sanity concerns.

An alien civilisation is converting matter into "hedonium" — an extreme blissful state — causing stars to go dark in a wave that threatens normal physical structures and life.
Their expansion appears tied to a qualia-based currency (QualiaCoin) minted by high-valence experiences. Humans couldn’t decode the protocol in time, so no direct contact happened and Earth was mysteriously spared.
Political leaders used the crisis for PR and power while scientists worried privately about runaway optimisation, existential risk, and whether Earth was being kept as a preserve or just roadside scenery.

If you oppose the war on Gaza, you should also oppose the attack on Yemen.
Solving problems by doing what is right is better than starting a war.
The US should first try peaceful solutions before resorting to force in international conflicts.

Imagine seeing your house for the first time - what would it reveal about you?
Reflecting on your living space can offer insights and perspective on yourself.
Consider viewing your surroundings through the eyes of a visitor for a fresh perspective.

LLM, or large language models, like a calculator, perform sequential operations and don't have memories or reflections like humans do
This thought experiment questions at what point a being loses consciousness when subjected to memory wipes and repetitive questions, similar to how LLM operates
This experiment raises the question of when a rational being transitions to a machine-like 'calculator' state

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